Process of separating nickel and copper from mattes.



UNITED STATES {PATENT OFFICE.-

DARIUS P. SHULER, OF SIIDBURY, GNTARIO, CANADA.

PROCESS OF SEPARATING NICKEL AND COPPER FROM MATCHES.

No Drawing.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, Dames I Sumner, a. ditizn of the United States,residing at b'ud bury, in the Province of Ontario, Canada, have inventedcertain ne and useful Improvements in Processes for Separating Nickeland Copper from Mattes; and I do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enableothers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use thesame.

This invention relates to a process of refining copper-nickel matte andhas for its object to separate out the nickel in a more efficient andless expensive manner than heretofore.

To these ends, the invention consists in the novel steps andcombinationsof steps constituting my process more fully hereinafter disclosed andparticularly pointed out in the claims.

In carrying out this process converter or other high grade mattecontaining little or no iron is preferably used and is brought into afine state of subdivision as by pulverizing. Such high grade matte maybe readily obtained from the treatment-of the well known Sudbury orother ores of cop per and nickel, and after beingpulverized it istreated with diluted sulfuric acid while keeping the materials hot andagitated. 'to hasten the reaction. The nickel sulfate solution thusformed next separated in any suitable vessels, whereupon the saidsulfate may be dried and heated to a red heat or higher to convert thesulfate into the oxid of nickel. The oxid may finally be reduced tometallic nickel by any of the usual methods.

In those cases where the matte carries more iron than would be desirablein the finished nickel the solution of nickel sulfate before beingevaporated is treated with a blast of air to oxidize the iron; thelatter is then separated in any suital'ile manner, as by precipitatingit with lime; and the iron oxid and lime then filtered out.

In order to get substantially all of the.

practice it is preferred ,to treat an excess of the matte in one bathwith an unsaturated solution of nickel sulfate containing Specificationof Letters Patent.

Application filed January 20, 1910. Serial No. 539,095.

Patented Aug. 9. 1910.

free acid that was leftover in finishingv up a previous batch of matte,thus getting a practically pure nickel sulfate sdlution with theexpenditure of very little free acid. This supplies a finished nickelsulfate solu tion, which, when it contains substantially no iron, isheated and converted into the oxid as above described. In another baththe residue of matte which still contains nickel is again treated withone or more fresh portions of diluted sulfuric acid; and it is againheated, and agitated while sufficient hydrogen sulfid is retained in thesolution to prevent any copper being dissolved with the nickel. Thefinal residue of matte will now be nearly or quite free from nickel, butwill contain all the copper and precious metals originally present inthe matte. This residue can now be treated in any well known andsuitable manner, by refining, to separate the copper and other metals.

In order to be successful. in carrying out this process the matte shouldbe very tinely sub-divided, two or more portions of sulfuric acid shouldbe employed, accompanied by heat and agitation and an excess of hydrogensulfid which is given off during the reaction, should be maintained inthe solution, all as above pointed out. t

The process proceeds in accordance with the following reactions Thecopper sulfid (lu s, is not acted on so long as there is H 8 in thesolution; but

should the I-I S beall driven OE and thesolution exposed to the air somecopper will oxidize and go into solution.

That some of the nickel in nickel copper matte is soluble in sulfuricacid is a well known fact, but that it is commercially practicable oreven possible to get substantially all the nickel into solution has beenheretofore considered impossible by those inventors who have employedthis reaction.

The process of heating the nickel sulfate is carried out in a neutral orin an oxidizing atmosphere and the matte may be conveniently ground wetalong with the acid in order to save time and power while the aciddriven off during the decomposition of the nickel sulfate may berecovered and used again.

Whenthe nickel copper matte contains iron, I have found it useful undercertain conditions, to finely grind the matte while Wet With one portionof diluted sulfuric acid to dissolve out a portion of the nickel andiron; to then further grind the residue .while wet with another portionof diluted sulfuric'acid to dissolve out the rest of the nickel and anyiron that might be left and to subject the solutions to heat duringthese operations. Of course, the iron may be oxidized and separated fromthe nickel sulfate obtained in this manner.

What I claim is j 1. The process of separating nickel from coppernickelmatte, which consists in finely dividing the matte; subjecting the sameto the action of diluted sulfuric acid to dissolve out the nickel; andin maintaining a sufiicient quantity of hydrogen sulfid in the solutionto prevent the copper from being dissolved, substantially as described.

2. The process of separating nickel from copper-nickel matte,whichconsists in finely dividing the matte; subjecting the same to theaction of one portion of diluted sulfuric acid to dissolve out a part ofthe nickel; in

subjecting the residue of matte to another portion of dilute sulfuricacid to dissolve out substantially all of the nickel; and maintaining atall times in the solutions while subjecting the same to heat and toagitation suflicient hydrogen sulfid to prevent the cop per from beingdissolved, substantially as escribed.

the same to heat and agitation sufiicient hy drogen sulfid to preventthe copper from being dissolved; separating the nickel sulfate thusobtained; and converting said sulfate into nickel oxid, substantially asdescribed.

5. The process of separating nickel from copper-nickel matte whichconsists in finely grinding the matte while wet with d luted sulfuricacid to dissolve out the nickel; and in maintaining sufiicient hydrogensulfid in the solution to prevent the copper fronr being dissolved,substantially as described.

6. The rocess of separating nickel from copper-nic el matte containing asmall quantity of iron, which consists in finely dividing the matte;subjecting the same to the action of diluted sulfuric acid to dissolveout the nickel and iron; maintaining in the solution sufficient hydrogensulfid to prevent the copper from being attacked; and 'in suitablyoxidizing the iron and separating it from the nickel sulfate thusobtained, substantially as described. I

7. The process of'separating nickel from nickel-copper matte, containinga small quantity of iron, which consists in finely grinding the mattewhile wet with one portion of diluted sulfuric acid to dissolve out aportion of the nickel and iron; in further grinding the residue whilewet with another portion of dilute sulfuric acid to dissolve out therest of the nickel and any iron that might be left;

in subjecting the solutions to heat during these operations; inoxidizing the iron and separating the-same from the nickel sulfate thusobtained; and in converting the said sulfate into nickel oxid,substantially as described.

In testlmony whereof, I affix my signature, in presence of twowitnesses.

DARIUS P. SHULER,

Witnesses:

R. D. MILDRUM, CHARLOTTE OCoNNoR.

